Evil Wins Out as ‘Maleficent’ Takes $70 Million at the Box Office

Evil was good news for Walt Disney Co. this weekend, as “Maleficent” opened to a solid, if not spectacular, $70 million in the U.S. and Canada, according to studio estimates.

The $180 million production, which stars Angelina Jolie in a retelling of Sleeping Beauty from the perspective of its villain, performed even better overseas, where Ms. Jolie is widely popular. It collected $100.6 million from 47 foreign markets, doing particularly well in Mexico, Russia and the United Kingdom.

Despite mixed reviews, audiences seemed to be enchanted by the film, giving it an average grade of A on opening night, according to market research firm CinemaScore. 60% of moviegoers were female and 45% families, according to exit polls

The weekend’s other new release got gunned down. Comedy “A Million Ways to Die in the West,” directed by and starring “Family Guy” creator Seth MacFarlane, debuted to a weak $17.1 million.

Mr. MacFarlane’s first movie “Ted,” in which he voiced a foul-mouthed animated teddy bear who was friends with Mark Wahlberg, was a surprise hit in 2012. It opened to $54.4 million domestically and eventually grossed almost $550 million worldwide. Despite that pedigree, it seems audiences were far less interested in the premise of a comedic Western and Mr. MacFarlane in a live action lead role.

The roughly $40 million production was made by production and finance company company Media Rights Capital and distributor Universal Pictures, owned by Comcast Corp.

In second place was “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” which collected $32.6 million on its second weekend in theaters. Its ticket sales declined 64%, not unusually high following a large opening on a holiday weekend — in this case Memorial Day. The super-hero sequel from 21st Century Fox Inc.’s 20th Century Fox has collected $162.1 million domestically so far.

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